Friday, May 10, 2013

A paramedic in West, Texas, has been arrested for possession of an explosive device, a federal official said on Friday, but it was not immediately clear whether there was a connection to a deadly explosion last month at a fertilizer plant in the town.

Texas officials also announced on Friday that they had opened a criminal investigation into the April 17 explosion that killed 14 people and injured about 200 others.

The man arrested was Bryce Reed, said Franceska Perot, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

A source familiar with the matter said it was not clear that the arrest was linked to the blast at West Fertilizer Co.